McGregor Reveals Celtic Pre-Match Chat Due to Hampden Issue

Celtic captain Callum McGregor has reflected on the conditions during the Hoops Viaplay Cup semi final clash against Kilmarnock on Saturday.

Ange Postecoglou’s side booked their place in the final of the competition next month to face Rangers after a 2-0 victory at the national stadium.

Daizen Maeda put the Hoops in front after Kyle Lafferty’s botched clearance was deflected into the net by the Japanese forward who has been in fine form since returning from the World Cup.

Celtic had the ball in the back of the net on four separate occasions but two of the goals were ruled out by VAR as Giorgos Giakoumakis came off the bench to put the tie to bed after he tapped in following David Turnbull’s low drive being saved by Sam Walker in the Killie goal.

The conditions were difficult as the rain howled down on Hampden as the wind swirled in and around the stadium. At first glance, before the match kicked off the pitch didn’t look to be in great shape which was only made worse.

If this was a typical season, the culmination of the League Cup would have already taken place as it tends to have been wrapped up in the first part of the season but due to the World Cup it was moved back.

Glasgow’s January weather wasn’t too kind which was mentioned by a number of players including the Celtic captain.

“To say the least. It was pretty wild. But that is part of football. You have to deal with that,” said McGregor as quoted by The Times.

“You have to deal with the pitch. In semi-finals, it is not about great football. You have to get the job done, which we did well.

“We knew it would be a difficult game, with the conditions as well. But we showed our steel at times and some quality.”

“We saw the pitch before the game, and the message was still to try and play the way we want to and try not to turn it into a fight or a scrap because they have some big, physical boys, and maybe that is the way they wanted the game to pan out.

“In the moments when you have to defend and be strong, that is, of course, part of the game as well, but it was important we tried to stick to our principles as much as we could.”

Celtic’s Top Five January Deals Over The Last DecadeIt’s important that the team tried to stick to their principles even though the conditions were difficult and ground staff at the national stadium will need to get moving quickly in order to get the park ready for the final showdown next month.